Tackling fussy eating

Fussy eating and/or food refusal is a completely normal phase that most toddlers go through.

Here are some tips to help you deal with fussy eating:

• Avoid offering ‘processed’ high fat/sugar/salt foods in the early years. Foods such as crisps, biscuits, sweets (even ‘baby varieties’) have little to offer in nutrition and are designed to have a strong ‘pull-power’. This means children will quickly develop a strong preference for those products over healthy nutritious foods. Remember that they have no other reference for sweet/salty foods other than what we feed them. The natural flavour of foods is enough and will be wholeheartedly enjoyed if we allow young taste buds the opportunity.
• Offer new food alongside or mixed with foods that you know your child already likes. Remember, you may need to offer a new food 10 – 15 times or more before a child will eat it happily
• Because children have small tummies, it’s a good idea to offer a small amount of food regularly, rather than overloading them at mealtimes. You might want to try three small meals and two and three healthy snacks a day
• A regular routine for meals and snacks helps take away the pressure to eat (for parents and children). For instance, if they don’t eat much breakfast then a snack is scheduled only a few hours away – at which time they may be more ready to eat something
• There are no official guidelines on exactly how much food children need. Be guided by your child’s own hand size and appetite for how much to serve. As a general rule for mealtimes, you might offer a child-sized handful of vegetables, a handful of carbohydrate and a handful of protein, with option to have more if they wish. See our healthy portion size guide which includes a great animation to showcase this
• Children are good at regulating how much they need to be eating, and will tell you when they’re hungry and or feeling full. It’s very common for toddlers to eat very little for a few days, and then eat really well a few days later. It can be helpful to think about what your child has eaten over a few days or across a week instead of focusing on each individual mealtime
• Most toddlers like to be independent, so give them a chance to feed themselves. You can always ask if they need some help putting the food onto the fork or spoon
• Children copy the behaviours of others. Try to eat and enjoy regular meals with them wherever possible, and be a positive role model for them
• Allow sufficient time for a child to comfortably eat, without being rushed
• In the early years, meal and snack time is also about exploration and enjoyment. Remembering this can take the pressure off them actually eating all of it, or any of it. Eating is a skill to be learned and it’s okay to trust a child’s appetite and personal preferences within the context of serving them healthy balanced meals. Avoid “just one bite” rules, bribes or force feeding your child – focus instead on creating positive experiences with food
• Avoid giving food as a reward, for comfort or to keep your child busy
• Don’t be tempted to offer other ‘favourite’ foods in place of any meals and snacks that your child refuses, as this can teach them that if they refuse foods they will get something else instead. This prevents them from enjoying a variety of foods
• Food refusal can be caused by any number of things, such as tiredness, overstimulation or appetite fluctuations. It may not be just because they don’t like what’s on offer
• Avoid serving food in front of a screen such as TV or tablet, research shows this impacts appetite and our ability to regulate how much we eat

All children aged 6 months to 5 years should have a daily supplement with Vitamins A, C, and D, but this does not replace a healthy balanced diet. Find out more about how you can create tasty toddler mealtimes that your child will love.

There can be some medical reasons why your toddler might not be eating, the most common ones being constipation and anaemia.

If you have concerns about your child’s eating talk to your health visitor or GP. They’ll be able to check their growth and development and give you further advice.

Useful links

• Loughborough University has developed a free app which you can download from their Child Feeding Guide website. There are also lots of practical tips on how to get your child to try new foods.
• First Steps Nutrition
• Sensory Play Toolkit